Sharing your Netflix password? This software could soon track you down

A software company has developed technology that would let streaming services identify when subscribers share accounts.

Author:
TEGNA Staff

Published:
3:19 PM EST January 10, 2019

Updated:
3:20 PM EST January 10, 2019

Do you share your Netflix password with your friends? Well, that might come to an end soon.

Synamedia has developed technology that would let streaming services identify when subscribers share accounts.

The software company said in a statement that its “Credentials Sharing Insight” technology would “combat the rapid rise in account sharing between friends and families.” It unveiled the software during the 2019 CES conference in Las Vegas this week.

Using AI, machine learning and behavioral analytics, the software would be able to alert streaming services (like Netflix, Hulu, Spotify and others) whether a subscriber’s password was being used by multiple people.

Most streaming services have different pricing plans that depend on how many devices users stream on at the same time. Netflix, for example, offers a basic plan for $7.99 that lets subscribers watch shows on one screen. Its premium plan lets subscribers watch on four screens for $6 more.

Synamedia said the software also has the ability to “shutdown large-scale, for-profit credential sharing accounts run by fraudsters.”

It wasn’t immediately clear whether Netflix or other streaming services would invest in the software.